1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to recreational furniture, and more particularly, to a novel convertible bench/table apparatus that conveniently transforms a bench structure into a picnic table by novel means incorporating a hinged armrest assembly that facilitates the conformation change when the backrest is lifted and pivoted to its side exposing a tabletop for dining.
2. The Background Art
Persons owning homes are common consumers of recreational patio and pool furniture. In most instances, homeowners purchase patio and pool furniture for the convenience and comfort they provide when leisurely relaxing outside or near the pool. Consumers of recreational furniture usually have an interest in the aesthetic beauty of a piece of patio or pool furniture and intend such furnishings to enhance the settings of their homes and to add decoration to their pool areas.
Benches have traditionally provided persons with a place to sit and relax outside in the yard, on the porch or near the pool. Many homeowners purchase lawn benches made of natural woods and finish them with a weather protecting varnish to ensure the longevity of the bench against the elements of nature. Although lawn benches have traditionally provided a means of sitting and relaxing in an outdoor setting, when it comes time to eat, no outdoor tabletop is available for supporting plates or the food to be eaten.
Many homeowners will accordingly purchase picnic tables as an appropriate means for placing food thereon and providing seating therearound for the people eating. If a mere surface is needed for putting the food to be eaten on and a bench for seating for those persons eating, then a picnic table suffices. However when the meal is completed, the bench associated with the picnic table no longer provides any advantage to those individuals seeking to relax and enjoy the outdoor setting. The only option of comfort while sitting on such a bench is to lean forward and rest your elbows on the tabletop. Although a picnic table provides a great function while eating outdoors, when it comes time to relax and enjoy the pleasant outdoor weather while communicating with family or friends, a park bench would provide a more comfortable piece of lawn furniture.
In view of the foregoing, a number of attempts have been made in the past to manufacture a convertible bench/table structure providing a bench with a seat and backrest in one position, to be further transformed into a seat with a tabletop structure, analogous to a picnic table, in a second position. Although the prior art combination bench and picnic tables afford significant advantages over the use of a separate table and benches or chairs, significant disadvantages remain.
For example, consumers generally desire a combination bench and table with a simple and easy means of converting the seat and backrest of the bench into the picnic table formation. Unfortunately, however, the prior art typically employs complicated mechanical laches and multiple pivotal points to accomplish a conformational transformation of the bench into a picnic table for dining. Likewise, the components of the prior art rely upon multiple working parts, a great number of nut and bolt assemblies and an array of pivotal joints to construct the final working unit. Because of the numerous mechanical parts in the prior art, production and manufacturing costs are proportionately increased and ultimately passed on to the consumer.
In addition, the multiplicity of the above-mentioned working parts in the prior art, the arrangement of the various nut and bolt assemblies, and the array of pivotal joints in the final construction of the bench/table assembly, present the consumer with a frustrating assembly process. In most situations, the consumer ends up trying to read and interpret lengthy and somewhat complicated instructions to assemble a working design for use.
Another disadvantage to the prior art combination table and bench is the difficult and sometimes awkward means of converting the bench into the picnic table conformation. In some instances, not only do pivotal pins have to be adjusted or frame members slidably modified in their adjacent slots, but with many known prior art devices, the repositioning of the backrest into the tabletop requires more than one individual to accomplish.
Considering all these factors, the prior art demands that consumers sacrifice a lengthy investment of time in assembling their final working units. And with the great numbers of mechanical working parts to assemble, the process of home construction is intensified forcing consumers to wade through in-depth and sometimes over technical instructions to attain any use from their so-called recreational furniture.